{"id":22,"date":"2014-08-19T01:14:38","date_gmt":"2014-08-19T01:14:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/peter-wp-buildtest-4.cebu.titanweb.com.au\/?page_id=22"},"modified":"2019-09-05T23:58:01","modified_gmt":"2019-09-05T15:58:01","slug":"about-bpd","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bpdawareness.com.au\/about-bpd\/","title":{"rendered":"About BPD"},"content":{"rendered":"

Some people have a certain set of difficulties that affects their sense of self, their emotions, and their relationships that can be diagnosed as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). The diagnosis of BPD is based on an assessment of these difficulties over time and across a range of situations.<\/p>\n

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Experiences of BPD include difficulties with:<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Emotions and overwhelming feelings<\/h2>\n

People with BPD describe having intense and often very painful feelings that overwhelm them.  \u201cPeople with BPD are like people with third degree burns over 90% of their bodies. Lacking emotional skin, they feel agony at the slightest touch or movement.\u201d Marsha Linehan. People can feel very empty and alone; as though they shouldn\u2019t feel the way they feel and that they have to hide their true feelings behind a mask. Sometimes there can be a feeling of unreality, dissociation or a strong sense of not deserving anything good, not knowing who you really are or hating yourself. With such powerful emotions people may turn to self-harm, substances or compulsive behaviours to change unbearable experiences into more manageable ones.<\/p>\n

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Relationships<\/h2>\n

People can experience strong and changeable feelings of closeness and trust, and betrayal and anger. Often for very good reasons, people may be vigilant and highly sensitive to any sign of rejection or criticism. Sometimes people will try to be what someone else wants them to be especially if they need that person. They may feel that they have to try and keep everyone else happy but they don\u2019t matter or are not entitled to their own life or their own feelings. Sometimes the anticipation of being rejected can be unbearable and it might feel safer to reject someone before they reject you. People are often highly critical of themselves and maybe of others which may make relationships volatile. It can be really hard to trust people and difficult to cope with losses and separations.<\/p>\n

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Impulsive behaviours<\/h2>\n

Sometimes in desperate need to change something that feels unbearable people will do something that they wouldn\u2019t choose to do if they hadn\u2019t been so overwhelmed by their feelings. These feelings could include shame, anger, self-hate or despair or a feeling of disconnection or numbness. Sometimes people try to take their own lives. Sometimes people hurt themselves (self-harm), use drugs or alcohol, or take risks with their safety to try to cope, to punish, or to feel better, for a while at least, even if what they are doing causes other problems. Some people might judge these behaviours but they can be ways of validating feelings, proving something to yourself or someone else or simply the best way you know to cope.<\/p>\n

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Fragile sense of self<\/h2>\n

People may feel they don\u2019t know who they are, or that who they are changes with who they are with. They may feel empty, disconnected and not real at times, or for prolonged periods. People might have a voice in their head that tells them they don\u2019t have real problems, and that they don\u2019t matter. That voice may be very unkind. When particularly overwhelmed some people can withdraw, leaving them feeling vulnerable and alone.<\/p>\n

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More about Borderline Personality Disorder<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Trauma and BPD<\/h2>\n

BPD is something that affects people\u2019s emotional stability and relationships. Many people had insecure, disrupted or losses of attachment relationships in childhood which is when we usually learn to regulate our emotions, so it makes sense that emotional regulation would be very difficult for people who had difficult relationships with a parent. Some people also have experienced complex trauma, being betrayed, emotionally or physically neglected, or emotionally, sexually or physically abused. Many people have post-traumatic symptoms, such as nightmares, flashbacks, dissociative states (spacing out), panic symptoms and feelings of unreality. For some people the negative, very critical experiences they have had can come back as internal, punishing self- talk or sometimes as voices. The internal voice may make judgemental, scornful or contemptuous comments that may make people feel worse.<\/p>\n

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How common is BPD?<\/h2>\n

It is estimated that at any point in time, 1.8% of the general population experience BPD. About 75% of these are females (males are more likely to be diagnosed with other disorders).<\/p>\n

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Will things get better?<\/h2>\n

BPD used to be thought of as untreatable by some people but this is not true. BPD is the good prognosis diagnosis but people need help. BPD is a terribly painful and long struggle and isn\u2019t something that can be fixed quickly or in isolation. Remember you are not alone, others have felt like you and life is much better for them now.<\/p>\n

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What can you do?<\/h2>\n

No advice works for everyone but here are some suggestions to consider.<\/p>\n

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Attitude<\/h2>\n